24
THE JUDGES’ NEWSLETTER No. 1 1997
THE JUDGES’ NEWSLETTER
No. 1 1997
A G lass fo r a ll Reasons ? asks Eddie Evans
Never mind the glass, just taste the wine inside. Ten years ago, most wine buffs would not have argued with an invitation like that.
Serve it in fine cut crystal or a simple tumbler and it will taste the same. Unfortunately not. It took an Austrian- a glass crusader with an almost evangelical mission to convince the world of this. Now the very mention of his name, Georg Riedel, brings a smile of recognition to the lips of wine enthusiasts and producers from Stockholm to Sydney.Riedel has created the wine glasses of the wine world. Riedel’s theory is simple, and you can test it at home yourself. The human tongue contains different zones at its back, tip and sides which can detect four basic flavours of bitterness, sweetness, acidity and saltiness.
Buy any wine and put it in three differently shaped glasses. You will soon see that every shape makes the wine taste different, almost as if you were tasting three different wines.The contrast can be startling. Each grape variety, in other words, needs its own special glass (you could call it an instrument) if it is to taste at it’s finest. Georg Riedel has proved this time after time, at his “glass workshops" around the world, where professional tasters are given samples of the same wine, in different glasses (without knowing which is which.).The results are always more or less the same- on average, wines score 25% more points when served in a correctlly designed Riedel glass.
Even that most discerning of tasters, the American wine “Guru” Robert Parker, recently wrote that “the finest glasses for both technical and hedonistic purposes” are made by the Riedel company. The effect of these glasses is profound. I cannot emphasise enough what a difference they make.Riedel’s contribution to the appreciation of fine wine was acknowledged earlier this year, when Decanter magazine named Georg Riedel its “Man of the Year". At 46, not only was he the youngest man ever to receive this honour but the first to have no professional involvement in the wine business. When you look at a range of Riedel glasses you will immediately notice three vital things.
First of all, they are made of clear crystal. Georg Riedel believes strongly that colour is an important part of wine's pleasure, and only through plain crystal can this be appreciated to the full
Secondly, some of the glasses are rather bigger than usual. Many wine drinkers do not pay enough attention to the aromas of wine. That's simply not possible with Riedel glasses, since they are large enough to accommodate a generous serving even if only a quarter full. This is the ideal depth to allow you to swirl the wine and enjoy it’s perfume.
Doubly so, indeed, since the bowl of each Riedel glass has been specially designed to draw the specific aromas of each wine type forward.
The third thing you will notice is that some of the glasses have outflared rims, while some do not. Once again this is a deliberate ploy to get the best out of each wine. Wines with high acidity, as Rioja or Pinot Noir, are best served in glasses with a defined "lip”. This directs the flow of the wine to the tip of the tongue, where sweetness is perceived. For wines in which acidity plays a less important role, such as Cabernet Sauvignon (red) or Chardonnay (white), the rim of the glass directs the wine to the centre of the mouth, minimising the effects of bitterness (from tannin, detected at the back of the tongue).
There are four main ranges of Riedel glasses. Sommeliers, the original mouth-blown crystal range today encompasses 30 odd shapes, while the machine made Vinum range, which sells for less than half the price, consists of 20-odd shapes also in clear crystal.As an introduction, there is Ouverture, a range which has been streamlined down to a mere five shapes, made from potash glass.
The most recent addition is the Gourmet glass, a practical short stemmed glass for everyday use. At just six inches tall it is small enough to fit into the top drawer of a dishwasher.Prices begin at £29.75 per stem for the Gourmet glass, £11-13.50 for the Vinum range, and £30 plus for the Sommeliers Glasses
8
Eddie Evans
Scottish Judges A.G.M.A Report by Gerry Sparrow
October 5th. 1996.
Being selected by mere circumstance of proximity, Doug Hodkinson and I 'opted' to travel the 250 mie round trip to this year's Scottish A.G.M. held for the first time at the Beecraigs Restrauant, Beecraigs Country Park, Linlithgow, just off the M9 between Edinburgh and Gasgow.
We were welcomed by the new chairman Peter Sheppard and after a coffee reception settled down to a most excellent talk by Richard Paterson, master blender for White & MacKay.To give this short precis of his talk does not do him justice, but here goes.
Blended whiskies are made up of pure malt whiskies from the three main whisky producing areas of Scotland, namely The Highlands of Scotland, The Lowlands and the Isles. Each of these regional whiskies has it's own characteristics, ie., the Lowland whiskies are light, delicate and feminine, the Highland whiskies are robust and masculine. The Isles whiskies are rugged aggressive and hardy. AH these 'characters' are then trapped in a barrel to sort themselves out, sexually and socially! Naturally this takes some time, ranging from 3-4 years to 27 years to attain perfect harmony.
Peter had brought about eight samples representing the three regions and various blends. I noted everyone gasped when it was pointed out that the end bottle was worth £300. Peter then went on to explain how these, and indeed any whisky should be sampled.
Having poured a sample into a glass, very simiar to an ISO glass, he added a small amount of water. He explained that this was to reduce the effect of alcohol on the nose and to allow the 'nuances' of the whisky to make themselves apparent. Taking his glass across his nose, he addressed it by saying "Hello". After a moments respite he repeated this procedure but dallied a litlle longer and said ‘ How are You?" Next with a good inhalation he assessed the sample with the words' How are You doing?" A good sample was then taken into the mouth and without haste made to swirl and circulate to the fullest assessment. Only after the most subtle of flavours had been noted was the sample allowed to slip away. Having observed this mouthwatering exercise several times everyone was convinced they too could be experts! A mad rush then ensued in the direction of a certain bottle. Whie queuing I was able to sample others! Eventually I could appreciate the £300 price tag!
We then divided into several groups for a wine assessment. The aims of which were to discuss the merits of three wines for their levels of sweetness - no other factor.
The wines were:-
Barsac style. SG 25. Acidity 8.5 grams per litre, 13% alcohol.Monbazilac style. SG 24. Acidity 7 grams per litre, 13% alcohol.Loire ( Moulin Touchais ). SG 18. Acidity 7 grams per litre, 14% alcohol.
On tasting the wines I found them all to be well made, dean and pleasing to the palate. Two of the wines had been entered in a major Scottish show and judged as lacking sweetness. The conclusion of our group was that all the wines lacked sweetness and were not in balance. Certainly they would have been rejected in an English show for the reason. A vigorous debate then ensued between the groups the content of which led Doug and I to conclude our Scottish colleagues have a sweetness problem!
( I have the recipes for these three wines which I am forwarding to Hedey. They make prove of interest to some, as and when space in the Newsletter allows). (see page 37)
After a good lunch among friends we felt we should not intrude on their A.G.M. and took the Opportunity to travel home. We thank the Scottish guid for inviting us.
Gerry Sparrow.
16
A Full Report of the 1996 ? ^ Conference and A.G.M. |
Reports by Guild Members
F r id a y N ig h t
T h e B e e r T a s t in g
This was titled" Various beers as found in the Guild handbook" and when 'I saw who was brewing and presenting the beers on Friday I realised that we were in for a “reet rare treat”.After a very amusing introduction by Frank Stead. We were down to business
The first beer to be tasted was a light ale, o.g.1034 brewed and presented by Phil Siddall This was an excellent example of this style of beer, with a good colour and light hop farewell.
The next beer in this style was brewed by Ian Alionby, this had a light floral hop nose, with a slightly acidic dry finish, o.g.1030.
Beer number 3 was again brewed by Phil Siddall, this was a pale ale with an o.g. of 1045. This had a lovely soft taste, was full bodied with a clean hoppy finish. It had -been brewed using Marris Otter malt, Golding hops in the boil, and had been late hopped with Northdown hops.
The fourth beer was one brewed by Frank Stead. This was an I.P.A. o.g. 1055 it had a clean hoppy nose with a grainy well balanced taste.
Frank brews 10 gallons a month of i this one (at least I think 'he said 10 gallons) and having tasted the 'beer I can see why it does not last very long.
Geoff Coulson was the brewer of our fifth beer, this was Dave Lines recipe for a Harvest Brown Ale. it had a caramel nose and a pronounced hop farewell that was possibly out of character for this style of beer, It suffered from being tasted after Franks I.P.A. and should have possibly been tasted after the light ales.
Beer No six was again brewed' by Frank, and was a dry stout with ano.g. of 1045.This had a good roast grain nose and taste with a firm hop finish. Frank told us that he had had problems with the priming of some of the bottles, and an one occasion had christened the front room due to priming a bottle twice.
The seventh beer was the third beer 4 presented by Phil Siddall and was a strong ale with an s.g. of .1060 This had a good dark colour, a hoppy * nose, was full bodied with just a trace of residual sweetness Very moreish' indeed.Richard Brooksbank was the
brewer of our eighth beer. 'This time a heavy lager and was brewedusing soft water from the Lake
17district, lager malt and Saaz hops. This was an excellent example of this style of beer, it had a clean hoppy nose was full bodied with just the right amount of residual sweetness. The o.g. was1065.
The final beer was s the fourth are presented by Phil Siddall and was another Version of a strong lager with ano.g. of 1076 This was a superb beer with just the right amount of D.M.S.on- the nose. The taste was full bodied balanced by a nice blend of hops.
This was a tremendous tasting session and was rewarded by a well deserved round of applause. It once again shows what a depth of talent we have in our Guild I am not sure how anybody is going to follow that next year.
Mike Davey
SAT.am . 1 st.SEssioN
T o O ak o r N ot to O ak T hat is the Q uestion .
This was the subject for the first presentation on Saturday morning at this years Annual Conference at Leicester. It was conducted by Richard Brooksbank, Alan Kimber and Alan Thurlow, all members of the NGWBJ.The first wine we tasted was a Dry White Table made in August of this year by Alan Kimber.This tasting was wood in wine as opposed to wine in wood.lngredients:-Grape Juice 7litres Apple Juice 5 litres Pineapple Juicel litre Gooseberries (Juice used) 3 lbs.Grape and Apricot Juice 2 litres Grape and Mango juice 2 litres Sugar 5lbs.Yeast (Gervin FF)1 sachet.The ingredients were made up to 5 gallons and then transferred into demi
johns. 2 gallons each received 16 grammes of Gervin American Oak granules. Fermentation was then allowed to proceed to completion. As fruit juice was used throughout very little deposit was thrown and this along with the use of a Gervin FF yeast allowed the wine to stand for 3 weeks, it was then racked .sulphited nd within 1 week was starbright. Then bottled for 1 month.The 16 grammes Oak used in this tasting meant the wine was not heavily oaked. On tasting this wine it was generally thought that the unoaked wine had a predominance of Pineapple in the bouquet whereas the oaked wine had an altered bouquet which was more complex and softer. The oaked wine had a fruitier taste and was much preferred.
The second wine we tasted was made by Alan Thurlow and was a Dry Red Table, it also was made in August of this year. Again this was wood into wine. Ingredients:-1 gall. Kit Solvino Classic 1 gall. Kit Vina 3 Week Wine 1 litre RibenaIb o t t l e R i t c h ie B la c k b e r r y Concentrate 15 gm.Tartaric Acid 300 gm.SugarThese ingredients were mixed together and split between 2 demi-johns and then topped up to the 4 litre level with cooled boiled water. To one of the demi-johns 25 grammes of Gervin toasted oak chips were added.
Both received an active Gervin A yeast.
The 1 gall. Kit Vina 3 week wine gave a brownish colouration to the wine and also residual sweetness from unfermentable sugars. On tasting all agreed the oaked style gave a "Clovey" or "Spiced" finish from the toasted oak chips and again was preferred to its unoaked counterpart.
The final part of this presentation was conducted by Richard Brooksbank who this time put wine into wood. He gave a brief account of the types of wood used in the making of Casks and informed all present that he has a contact for Casks(4.5 gall, costing £90. Richard obviously extols the virtue of cask ageing wines and I quote -"rough horrible stuff in and beautiful smooth wine out". He warned of the dangers of topping up casks with commercial wines because they are not necessarily sterile so one could possibly end up with a cask of Acetified wine Richard keeps his wines casked for a year, topping up every week.The first wine we tasted was a 6 yearold Dry Red Table. Ingredients:-Apple Juice 5 litresRed Grape Juice 5 litresC a b e r n e t S a u v i g n o n , G r a p eConcentrate 4 litres3lbs. Elderberries50 mis. 30% Acetic Acid1 oz. Chalk3/4 oz.Tannin Powder1 Kilo. Sugar(approx.)200 gms. Oak Powder Varietal Type D yeast for 5 gallons.We tried this wine both casked and uncasked.The concensus was the casked wine had an excellent bouquet but a slight cooked flavour from the concentrateused w hereas its uncasked counterpart
18had a poorer bouquet and lacked character.We then had a tasting of Richards oldest Red wine -1987 which again had an excellent bouquet but the body fell away on tasting.
A third Red wine we tasted had been kept in a cask for 9 months which was very fruity and had great potential. This particular wine, (cask as well) Richard promised to bequeath to the Guild on his death, so for his sake lets hope it matures for many years to come.!!
In summary of the Saturday mornings tastings it could be concluded that Oak was beneficial to the wines regardless of whether Oak was added to the wines or wine added to Oak.Many thanks go to these three gents for their effort on a subjet which was educational and can also ultimately go on to generate discussions and tastings from Circle, Federation to National level as we had at our Annual Conference this year.
Ian Allonby
Sat, a m . 2 n d . Session
T utored T asting of S outh A frican
W ines
Bill Elks introduced Martin Ward from the newly formed Association of Wine Educators. Martin, who said he was more accustomed to setting out from home at 4pm to conduct tastings, soon overcame the shock of leaving at 8am and quickly got into his stride, interspersing the tastings with a wealth of information about winemaking in South Africa. The audience, of course, had been hard at work since 9.15am with the weighty consideration of oak or no oak and were eager to taste some more wine. We were quickly captured by Martin's excellent delivery. He began with a brief history of South African Wines.
Although the Cape is part of the New World it does not mean that the winemakers are new to winemaking. The Dutch settled in 1652 and it was believed that wine prevented scurvy, so vines were soon planted, the first fruit was pressed in 1659. In 1685 Simon van der Stel established the legendary Constantia wine estate. In the early part of the 18th century wines from the Cape became very popular, helped by high tariffs on French wines. In 1861 the tariffs were removed by Gladstone, and Cape wines became uncompetitive. In 1866 phylloxera struck. It was not until 1918 and the formation of the Cape Winegrowers' Co-operative (KWV) that there was a revival in fortunes, mainly in fortified wines.By the mid 1980s regulations were eased to permit importation of improved vine cuttings and the recent revival began.The tasting began with Cape Country
Chenin Blanc, 1994. The wine was pale lemon in colour with a fresh, fruity nose, clean and quite fragrant. The wine was medium dry, had medium acidity and a pleasant fruity taste. It was made with ripe grapes and succeeded in the intention of being an easy-to- drink wine. The wine retails at £3.49 and contains 12% alcohol by volume.
Martin pointed out that many people assume that South Africa is very warm and produces mainly red wine. However, the climate is quite cool, with maximum summer temperatures of 27°C and minimum winter temperatures of 10°C, and 83% of the wine produced is white. The Chenin Blanc was formerly known in South Africa as Steen, and one third of the Cape winelands are planted with this variety. Modern winemaking techniques are used to produce light fresh dry and off- dry white wines like the one tasted.
The second wine was Neetlingshof Riesling, 1995. It was pale lemon in colour, with a clean, fruity nose with some floral hints. The wine was medium dry, with fresh acidity, good fruit flavour and some length. This was a well-balanced wine of good quality. The Neetlingshof estate goes back to 1652. It was purchased in 1985 by a Swiss industrialist and has about 190 hectares planted. The wine contains 12.5% alcohol and retails at £5.49.
The next wine was from the famous Groot Constantia Estate, Chardonnay 1995. The wine was pale yellow in colour, with a clean, fruity nose, slightly buttery, with a touch of oak. The flavour was dry, with medium acidity, ripe fruit, with some buttery character, and with good body and balance.lt had medium length and a clean finish. The wine allowed the true character of the Chardonnay grapes to show and the careful use of French oak barriques enhanced the flavour of the fruit. It contains 13.4% alcohol and costs £6.99.
Few South African wines are made by "flying winemakers" because they believe they can make wonderful wines themselves. They are very keen, very dedicated, have good winemaking schools, and often travel to other wine regions of the world to study. The average age of the modern vines is only 8 to 10 years, and, contrary to French wines, the better wines come from these younger vines. Chardonnay occupied less than 1% of the planted area in 1970, but now occupies 4.5%, rising rapidly.
The first of the red wines tasted was the KWV Pinotage 1993. Pinotage is a hardy red grape variety which was produced by crossing Pinot Noir and Cinsaut. Cinsaut was called Hermitage in South Africa, hence the name. There is a lot of Pinotage made to be drunk young, but Martin thought it was not the best style for the grape. When matured it can give wines of good structure. The wine which was tasted had a good red colour, medium intensity, with a pale
’ rim. The nose was rich, fruity and quite complex, with suggestions of
20cooked fruit, and a hint of oak. The flavour was full and fruity, rather like stoned fruit, quite high in acid, with soft tannins, a smooth finish and good length. It contains 12.5% alcohol and retails between £3.99 and £4.49.
There are more than 70 cooperatives across the Cape as well as many individual private producers and estates. Until 1992 the KWV was legally empowered to determine quotas and set minimum prices, but has now relinquished most of these powers and this has allowed producers of quality wines much more freedom to develop.
The fifth wine tasted was KWV Cathedral Cellar Triptych 1991. This vyine is a blend of Cabernet Franc (17%), Cabernet Sauvignon (65%) and Merlot 17%), aged in 300 litre French oak barriques, and has an alcohol content of 12.5%. The wine was ruby red, with deep intensity, slightly browning towards the rim. It had a rich, complex nose, fruity and spicy, typical well-oaked cabernet. The taste was full bodied, rich, slightly high in acid but quite well rounded, with good tannins and length. A wine to enjoy with food, it would be interesting to compare it with some 1990 Bordeaux reds, especially as it sells at £5.99 a bottle.
In 1973 the Wine of Origin classification was introduced, South Africa's version of Appellation Controlee. Each bottle has a paper seal which certifies that it has passed an analytical test and a tasting by a panel of judges which rejects faulty or atypical wines.
to arrive at Leicester in six bottles, accompanied by six empty bottles (end product:-twelve half filled bottles). Doug and his team then had to prepare the samples. Suffice to say this was his most difficult task. Some arrived with six bottles full and empty, but no additional corks! One set came with the six additional bottles half filled with Sodium Metabisulphite; one set as simply the six bottles of wine!, (The Hotel provided the empty bottles). By 1.45 p.m. however, Doug had his twelve half bottles, each of fourteen wines; eleven tables each to seat six to eight "candidates" with the twelfth set to be assessed by his adjudicators, who were to provide him with his 'master sheet".Candidates were permitted ONE HOUR to evaluate the fourteen, wines (the two additional- samples supplied by Gerry Fowles), these two, numbers twelve and fourteen, had to be judged against each other. They stood out because neither slowed any sign of pink colour! yet another G.F. experiment). Between sixty and seventy judges took part, their experience ranged from one Founder Member to our latest judge who had only qualified in September this year. Most judges completed their task well within the time schedule. The adjudicators first choice did not meet with universal approval. However, they were at pains to point out the class was for Rose Medium Dry not an attractive full bodied, fruity wine of low acidity!!.
22expected of us For the record, I was. able to find out who had made the adjudicators first choice Better still the recipe!. Try Winemaking in Style, page 132, recipe 10.13 the wine fermented out to 992, then 325mls.of Tesco Cranberry/Raspberry juice added. Instead of the recommended sweetening sugar, 40 grams of Xylitol was added one week before bottling on 31st.October. Wine was started on 12th.June using Gervin (new) No. 5 yeast.Our thanks to Doug for all his hard work to make this another success, also to his helpers . once again it proved a valuable exercise, the long term value to the Guild is immeasurable. I am sure we are all in agreement that it should continue to be part of the conference weekend.
Bilf Elks
Doug was very grateful to the Members who had supplied their wine (gratis) and to all, who had conducted themselves in. the manner
THE CONFERENCE DINNER
After enjoying a quite uneventful A.G.M.in the afternoon, it was now time to gather with our colleagues to enjoy a good meal accompanied by some very fine wines and on our table at least, sparkling conversation. After which, little did we know what superb and hilarious speeches were about to unfold. This mainly due to the speakers each receiving “A PHONE CALL from PAULINE” and an introduction interspersed by some well chosen jokes and asides from our inimitable M.C. Frank Stead.The first by The Chairman who proposed the toast to “The Queen”.
Followed by a light-hearted Norman Chiverton’s “To absent friends”, Norman mentioned many reasons why our friends may not be with us this evening, he went on to mention the passing of our founder Andy and to his great friends Vic Goffen and Philip Delmon. At this we all drank a toast to “Absent Friends”.
Mary Garside a recently qualified member proposed the toast to “The Guild” Mary who sat next to me at dinner was all a tremble prior to standing to give her speech, however she went on to produce a really superb and hilarious resume of her winemaking career, ably abetted by her husband George. Her charm and wit won her many friends that evening, confirming what a huge talent we have within our Guild.
The response to Mary’s toast was by our newly elected President Roy Sperry, who thanked Mary for her speech and remarked that he was pleased she was enjoying being a Guild member. Roy said
24that to be a member of such a prestigious organisation as ours, made him proud and that we needed to stand together to preserve the dignity and the excellence of the Guild of which we are so proud, and which offers so much help and guidance to those who follow our hobby.
The proposal of the toast to “Our Guests” was taken on by that well known cartoonist Bob Marsdon, who immediately had us “rolling in the aisles, by informing us he had never before had the privilege of speaking to such a “dense” audience, as previously he had only addressed small groups. He hoped that the guests had enjoyed themselves as much as we had and thanked them for supporting us so ably throughout.
Martin Ward who had been our Guest Speaker earlier in the day, replied on behalf of our visitors. Martin said he had been in the wine trade a lot of years and had been very surprised at the level of knowledge within the Guild, also the quality of the wines we had made and offered to him had been of a very high standard much to his surprise and pleasure. Martin finish by thanking us for inviting him and his fellow guests to our most prestigious conference.
At this point of the evening the President presented our latest member Mrs.Lesley Cooper with her hard earned certificate. Roy stated that this was perhaps the most pleasurable part of the Presidents job.
The final formal event was the presentation o f “The Newsletter Trophy” Hedley Jackson acting on behalf o f Ray Palfrey and himself
thanked all the contributors to the Newsletter for their participation.It had he said, been a difficult choice
because of the high standard o f articles submitted. However the decision had been made and the President was asked to present the Trophy to Bill Smith for his “Chiltem Tales". This was greeted with nmch applause.
There followed the raffle draw, and much happy socialising. After which the memory grows indistinct.
Hedley Jackson
N.E.C. M e e tin g (fo llow ing theAG.M.)
This was a very short meeting owing to the constraints of time The President Roy Sperry opened the meeting and invited the committee to elect a chairman
Election of ChairmanDoug Hodkinson proposed that Gerry Sparrow continue as Chairman. Joyce Upton Seconded Agreed unanimously.
Minutes of last meetingThe minutes were passed as a true record.
CorrespondenceThe agreement between ourselves and the Scottish Guild was available for signature, this was duly signed and a copy will be sent to Scotland. Tne South West group have offered to do a cider tasting on the Friday evening at the Conference weekend.
Chief ExaminerEric reported a 75% pass in the laste-am. 5 candidates are awaiting the
S unday M orning
26
THE WRONG SIDE OF THE BARby John Tompkins, NGWBJ
John gave out a leaflet of beer and pub facts, and one about Everards beers of Narborough, Leicestershire. They supply the Wigston pub of which he is the plump, jovial, bearded, blue-eyed landlord. He told us that the pubs needed us, that they did a great job nationally, and that we should support our local pubs and their loveable landlords.He described a publican's day, starting by cashing up the till, getting ready for the draymen, and stocking the shelves fully. The first customers in at 11 a.m. are the unemployed, including one who wanted a bottle o f meths "to light his mother’s stove" - but wanted it cold from the fridge!The pensioners come at 11.30 and order food, which is served from 12, and they are out by 12.30, with their busy life schedules. Then comes the proper lunch trade, £3 a la carte, for his wife Janet's cooking.After lunch, John gets a two-hour break. This is frequently interrupted by phone calls, e .g. from bar staff unable to come in later.His favourite time is "early doors”, 5 till 7.30, with people calling in on their way home from work for two relaxed pints with their mates. Customers' wives are the biggest problem, telephoning the pub to enquire about their husbands, as tea is ready.At 7.15 the pub starts to empty and three bar staff come on at 7.30, so John has a rest till 9.00. There is usually a skittles or darts match, with the visitors often including someone he has barred from the pub.
He walks round with coffee, chatting and peace-making, with some customers wanting the TV on or up, others wanting it off or down. The nice people go home by 10.45; the problem types stay on.
At the end of his interesting and amusing talk, he pulled us two of Everards draught beers, Tiger Best Bitter, and Mild. Brian Gent gave a humorous vote of thanks, including some tall stories about John, whom he seemed to know well. They each tried to get the last word, which curiously involved a lot of holding hands. Such are the mysterious ways of expolicemen and pub landlords!
Bernard Lamb
S u n d a y m o r n in g c o n t in u e d
JUDGES W INE & BEER ASSESSM ENTThe judging session was well supported, my thanks to all the judges who helped me to set up the room, there were 4 tables for the wine judging and 2 larger tables for the beer.
The Hotel staff were very helpful indeed .they didn't bat an eyelid when I went in and asked for 25 clean jugs in which to decant the Porters. Next year I would like to have 2 bottles of beer from each competitors, as thus would make it easier for the finalisation of the entries. There were 25 bottles of Porter from 15 competitors.I thoroughly enjoyed the beer
tasting and was fortunate to avoid the “gushers", indeed a couple of judges were well and truly soaked.
The White Dry Fruit wine class had an entry of 28 bottles from 24 competitors.A few had some faults and the winning
wines stood out, it was not hard to see where the faults were when reading the comments sheets. We judges are very honest and do not pull any punches (nor should we) when assessing the wines of our peers.
Beer Winners1st. Geoff Fryer 2nd.Charles Beabey 3rd. Doug Hodkinson 4th. Hywel Edwards
Wine Winners1st. Doug Hodkinson 2nd. & 3rd.Alan Downs 4th. Arthur Hills
Congratulations to all.
Next year the competition will be for theWine Red Dry TableFor the Brewers (2 Bottles please)I.P.A./Bitter s.g.1045I look forward to seeing you all againnext year for another excellentweekend
Joyce Upton
27
T h e W inn ing W ine R ec ip e
Dry White Fruit Wine.
The wine was a one-off, one litre blend of three wines, blended specifically for the Wine Assessment at the Guild Conference.The main component was nominally a Gooseberry wine which I made in August of this year in order to dispose of 2 litres of frozen gooseberry juice extracted from 7lbs. of Careless and Whitesmith berries,
which had lain in the freezer for about 2 years.It included in its formulation:-2 litres Gooseberry Juice (S.G.1036 ), extracted by Moulinex.6 litres Cape Muscat Grape juice.( Local Supermarket Supply).131b. pomace from the pressing of 701b. Cyprus Sultana Grapes.1 Gall. Sludge from racking of cleared juice from these grapes.1 Gall. Rose petal, Grape Sludge, Grape Cone, wine, (1994).Sugar to O.G.90, Gervin No.5 yeast,Nutrients,Pectolytic Enzyme.Final volume approx. 5 Gall, at S.G. 0990.The 1994 wine was itself a 'Recovery1 wine which needed further improvement, but although its manufacture is well documented I’ll not bore you with the details.
The second wine was made in September 1996 from the pressed juice of Cyprus Sultana Grapes, fermented with a Gervin No.5 yeast. The Original Gravity was 82 and it was racked at 0.994. I used a food processor to crush the grapes because Denys Turner's grape crusher, which I normally use, had been on loan to Gerry Sparrow, who had conveniently left it out for collection by the bin men.
The third wine was a 'Selection' Sauvignon Blanc kit wine which I made in July 1996.1 deviated from the instructions by substituting a Gervin No.5 yeast for the supplied yeast, and by not using the
28potassium sorbate component. With a starting S.G. of 1090 I obtained 4.5 gall, at S.G. 0990.
The Gooseberry wine was a good, dry, clean tasting wine with a firm, slightly harsh farewell. It was lacking some fruit and needed softening, so I decided to blend.The grape wine had a fresh, fruity flavour, with a hint of sweetness on the farewell.The kit wine had a hint of sweetness and a slightly bitter farewell, but had a good, fruity nose.After a very pleasant tasting session I settled on a blend of;_700 mis. Gooseberry.250 mis. Grape.50 mis. 'Selection' Sauv. Blanc.This was fined with 2 part finings, allowed to clear, and a bottle racked for the Wine Assessment.
Doug Hodkinson.
A Guest’s view of the Conference Weekend
from Eileen Sparrow
The month before the N.G.W.B.J.'s conference was an extremely busy time for Gerard and me - all self inflicted I might add.
We were planning three consecutive events. A four day walking holiday in Malhamdale, 28th. - 31st. October, the Guild A.G.M. 1st. - 3rd. November followed by Gerard's five and a half week trip to Australia. Clothes for each were prepared in different parts of the house.
We arrived home from Malhamdale at 10.00pm. on the Thursday night and
had to leave Whitley Bay at 8.00am next morning. It was a mad dash!
We stopped for coffee, on the way south, with Hedley and Barbara, where we exchanged a 50 kilo bag of grain for Hedley. (a good swap?) The three of us finally enjoyed a sandwich at the Stage Hotel at lunchtime. As Pauline had suggested, I took my swimsuit, but I'm afraid the events of the last few days caught up with me and I slept all afternoon.
As we approached the bar on Friday evening at 7.00pm. lots of friendly faces began to appear including our own friends from Tynemouth.
I enjoyed Frank's "Guild Beers", "Without printed information because the beers are free" joked Frank, (of course Frank!). However, there was information and funny stories from Frank and his select band of mashers.
At breakfast on Saturday morning there were quite a few tired looking people but still enthusiastic about the next presentation by Richard Brooksbank, Alan Kimber and Alan Thurlow. Richard's talk made me remember a catastrophe we had in our shed earlier in the year. As I lifted some garden tools up I must have knocked the tap up on a barrel of Gerard's best sweet red wine without realizing it and it ran over the garden chairs and onto the floor. Actually, it might not have been me??
I thought Mary Garside's toast to the Guild was an honest reflection of part of her life and an honour to the Guild.I had a good laugh at the jokes ( I often miss the punch line ) but I thought most of them could have been repeated to our grandchildren.
How Bob Marsdon knew what I got up to in the woods when out with my walking club I can't imagine!!
Our trip to Leicester was cut short because the driver decided to take the scenic route but it was enjoyable nevertheless.
Altogether this was a most pleasant weekend: a comfortable hotel with spacious areas for socialising: a helpful staff and plentiful food. There was a very relaxed atmosphere, members were so approachable and friendly.Years ago I didn't always experience such camaraderie. I'm sure ifs like a solera system - one has to pass through - Gerry and I are now part of the finishing school. Thankyou all for contributing to an enjoyable weekend.
Eileen Sparrow.
My veiy grateful thanks to all the ‘volunteers’ who have contributed to the Conference report. Ed.
Would that I Could - and I Might
I will try and answer Bob Marsdon’s query (Newsletter No.2, 1996 ) on judging of more loosely specified wine types, without getting bogged down in the depths of English grammar or trying to deal with every possibility with which the judge could ( may? might?) be faced.
The Handbook gives as one example a class described as 'White Dry', where 'all white and dry wines, including dry sherry or vermouth, would be acceptable'. Such wines are acceptable in this class as far as the Guild is concerned.
I thought that the Handbook gave a clear ruling for these cases but obviously there has been some difference in interpretation of this section of the Handbook.With reference to Bob's concern with his Sweet Red Wine class, a sweet, red After Dinner wine should have been accepted as a 'Sweet Red Wine' ( as should have, for that matter, a sweet, red Aperitif).
There need be no ambiguity; in the case of a loosely specified class, all the judge has to do is ask the Competition Organisers which wines are acceptable in that class. If the Competition Organisers delegate the decision to the judge, they must ask themselves the question 'Does the wine meet the class description?' If the class is described simply as
'Red Sweet' there are two questions to be posed for each wine -
Is the wine red? - Is the wine sweet?If the answer to both these questions is 'Yes', then the wine is acceptable; all wines which are red and sweet, regardless of alcohol content or ingredients, are equally acceptable and each wine must then be judged on its balance of properties.
Doug Hodkinson (Chairman, Technical Panel.)
30
BUTYRIC A C ID J an Experiment by Bill Smith s
To delete an off flavour from wine:
Quite often, on the show bench, we find red wines spoiled by butyric acid overtones, especially on the bouquet. This often stems from the use of elderberries, in particular dried elderberries. Elderberries are invariably contaminated with butyric acid producing bacteria which, because they can survive in the anaerobic environment of the yeast fermentation, can produce those cheesey aromas that can totally destroy what would be an otherwise perfectly sound wine. In freshly picked or frozen and thawed elderberries, of course, these bacteria can be destroyed by pasteurising the fruit. Pasteurising is achieved by bringing the fruit just to the boil and leaving for 10 minutes before cooling, since holding the fruit at over 800C for 10 minutes will kill all organisms present except any spores which
should not pose a problem during our pulp fermentations.
Dried elderberries, however, can already be contaminated with butyric acid depending on the source of supply. Current sources of supply appear to be more heavily contaminated with butyric acid than in the past.During the drying process, the butyric acid producing bacteria have undoubtedly found a suitable environment in which they can survive and produce their butyric metabolite. Although the obvious solution to this is to sniff before you buy, this is not always easy as the packaging can vary immensely depending on the manufacturer. What then is the solution if you find yourself with an otherwise perfectly good wine spoiled by a butyric bouquet and taste? Finding myself with a wine like this, a base for a dessert style wine, I decided to see if I could remove this negative quality from my wine.
My first attempt was to heat the wine and hold it at about 600C for an hour or two -totally unsuccessful in reducing the off flavour, and also ruining the underlying qualities of the wine. Next I used a product available commercially in the science arena (mine fell off a bus). The product is an agarose bead with an 8 carbon acid (octyl acid) attached to it. Butyric acid, with 4 carbons, could show some affinity (ability to bind) with the octyl- agarose. Again, a disaster with most of the pigment/tannin binding and no significant loss of butyric acid. Back to the drawing board!!
My next effort was to treat half the wine by addition of solid carbon dioxide (the product that old icecream vans used to maintain low temperatures). I continually added just enough carbon dioxide to keep the wine slowly bubbling for about 3 hours, then left the wine to recover for3 weeks. At this stage I tasted the wine, comparing it against the untreated parental wine. Biased as I was, I noted a dramatic reduction in the contribution of butyric off flavour from the carbon dioxide treated wine.
But I needed a more significant test than myself, since I knew what the treatment had been, and since I had a vested interest in the result. That's it - Wycombe Show next Saturday where there will be 5 invited judges for the wine section. And, as I'm in charge, there will be no lunches until they have done the butyric test!
Saturday 7th September 1996:
Each judge who arrived was asked to taste the 2 wines, treated and untreated and labelled C and A respectively. They were asked to record which, if either, they considered to have more butyric overtones in bouquet and flavour, and to indicate if they considered that the butyric acid levels in the wines were acceptable i.e. that the wines would not be penalised on this account on the show bench. With the addition of one local judge who was entering wine in the Wycombe show competition, 6 judges took part in the exercise. My thanks to Alan Kimber, Alan Thurlow, Alan Eldret, Eric Clarke, Peter Miller, and Vic Hallows.
All 6 judges chose wine C (the wine treated with solid carbon dioxide) as having the lower butyric acid content. 4 out of the 6 would have accepted only wine C as being suitable for class with respect to butyric acid content. The other 2 judges would have accepted both wines as suitable for class.Their tasting results clearly indicate that the butyric acid level in the wine has been not only been reduced, but also reduced to a level where the wine would not be penalised for any offensive bouquets and flavours. All that remains for me to do, therefore, is to treat the other half of my dessert wine and see how the product does in Scarborough.
Reducing the butyric acid in this way, however, is not really surprising as similar methods were used to estimate volatile fatty acids before the advent of gas chromatography and the more recent capillary electrophoresis. Before these newer techniques appeared on the scene, volatile fatty acids such as butyric acid were measured by steam distillation of acidified solutions of these fatty acids, the distilled acids being titrated with sodium hydroxide.
The use of solid carbon dioxide to reduce or even completely remove such butyric odours seems possible. The low temperature at which this occurs, about 5-100C as solid carbon dioxide volatilises at -800C, appears not to impair the normal flavours of the wine and there is no noticeable loss of
alcohol, although I intend to test this at some later stage.
Another similar fault facing winemakers is excessive acetic acid, especially in older red wines.
As acetic acid is more volatile than butyric acid, this fault should also be curable by the same method. Having found an old wine rather suffering from excessive acetic overtones, I will treat it similarly and let you know if the treatment was successful.
In conclusion, treatment with solid carbon dioxide appears to work as a cure for removal of butyric overtones. Prevention, however, is still the better treatment - do not use elderberries with the slightest hint of butyric!
BiU Smith
i
BLOOD ALCOHOL AND POLITICIANS
Our Guild is non-party political but we should be aware of threats to our hobby from politicians. A new one is looming, over permissible levels of blood alcohol for drivers. The Labour Party has said it will reduce the permissible levels if elected; they have the support of one of the major motorists’ organisations, and of some M.P.s in other parties.In my experience, Guild members are extremely careful and responsible about drinking and driving, and so are most wine and beer club members. Some of the decline in our hobby comes from people’s increased reluctance to drive to and from club events where alcoholic drinks are tasted and drunk, and public transport is often poor or not available. The present levels seem fair enough to me, and none of us would wish to encourage drunk-driving.If permissible levels are substantially reduced, as planned, it would have a dire effect on people’s social lives and on the home-made wine and beer movement. We should take every opportunity to point out that most accidents are caused by people who have had no alcohol, and that some people who have had a drink and an accident might well have had the accident even if they had not had the drink. We should of course condemn all those who do drive dangerously, whether or not drink is a factor. With an election looming (groan!), we should ask candidates and canvassers pertinent questions about blood alcohol legislation, and try to see that social life in Britain involving moderate consumption of alcoholic drinks is not done away with by politicians.
Bernard Lamb
Hop Bitterness - AAU or EBU?33
The flower of the female hop (Humulus lupulus) is used in brewing to provide bitterness, flavour, aroma, and to preserve the beer against spoilage. Glands at the base of the petals (bracteoles) contain resins which provide these characteristics. The petals contain tannins which help to clear the brew. The resin 'family tree' is shown below.
Hard resins and soft resins are differentiated by their solubility in hexane, the soft resins being soluble and the hard resins insoluble. Alpha acids are precipitated from solution by lead acetate; beta acids are not.Hops also contain, among many other things, about 0.5% of essential oils which provide hop aroma.The alpha acid content varies with hop variety and growing season and determines to a large extent the bittering strength of the hops. In order for bitterness to develop, the hops must be boiled with the liquid ( known as ■wort1) strained from the malt after mashing. During the boil, there is a rearrangement of the atoms within the alpha acids, although there is no change in the number or type of atom. This process is called 'isomerisation', the resulting products are called 'iso alpha acids', and the change of molecular structure in this case results in increased bitterness.The degree of bitterness developed depends on the quantity of hops used, their alpha acid content, the length of time the hops are boiled, their dispersion in the wort, the vigour of the boil, the S.G. of the wort and the volume of the resulting beer. The percentage of alpha acids converted to iso alpha acids is called the Hop Utilisation and can vary from about 20% to 35%.
HOPS
RESINS
HARD RESINS SOFT REPINS
HUMULONES LUPULONES
ALPHA ACIDS BETA ACIDS & WAXES
Early recipes for home brewed beers usually gave the amount of hops to use, with no reference to bittering potential or even variety. Later, named varieties of hop became available and the more progressive brewers, perhaps disciples of Dave Line, improved bitterness control by adding a calculated amount of hops depending on their published average alpha acid content
The weight of hops in ounces multiplied by the % alpha acid in the hops gave a measure of the bittering potential in Alpha Acid Units.(AAU). e.g. 2 oz of Goldings hops at 5% alpha acid content contributed 10 AAU.It is now easy to buy named varieties of hops with quoted alpha acid contents, allowing the home brewer better control over the bitterness of his or her beers. Provided the other variables mentioned earlier, such as length of boil etc. are standardised, the brewer should be able to make any type of beer at a fairly consistent bitterness level by using the AAU principle.For years I have used AAU as a control for the bitterness of my beers, with some success. Depending on the type of beer, I add a calculated weight of hops to give me the desired AAU per gallon, the only refinement being that hops added mid boil are assumed to give only half of their AAU and those added at the end of the boil (for aroma), none.However, some recently published books on home brewing don’t mention AAU; they refer to European Bittering Units, abbreviated to EBU.These differ from AAU in that whereas the AAU give a guide to the potential bitterness that is added to a brew, EBU are a measure of the actual bitterness developed in a brew; they are a measure of the iso alpha acid content in the finished beer. Home brewers are highly unlikely to have the means to measure the EBU content of their beers but the larger commercial brewers measure EBU on a routine basis. For those who are interested, EBU can be measured by using High Performance Liquid Chromatography or by measuring the absorption at a wavelength of 275 nanometres using a spectrophotometer. ( Those of you who are not interested please ignore the previous sentence).
There is no reason for members of the AAU club to dash off and change the way they control hop addition. However, if one wishes to match more closely say, a commercial beer, of known EBU level, then a knowledge of how to calculate the hop addition would be helpful, though not necessarily precise.Some recipes now refer to EBU values, and include hop additions calculated from them, assuming a particular value for the alpha acid content of the hops; not much help if your hops have a markedly different % alpha acidl With home brewers perhaps becoming more aware of the existence of European Bittering Units it is possible that beer judges could be questioned about them at 'Judges at the Bar1, so I thought it might be worth issuing "Doug's Guide to EBU", which now follows.
Wheeler and Protz, in their book "Brew Classic European Beers At Home" give the following formula for calculating EBU:-
EBU = weight of hops in grams x %alpha acid x %utilisation volume brewed in litres x 10
Recipes are given, each for four different brewed volumes, and the hop additions are based on a 20% Hop Utilisation.However, if we assume a Hop Utilisation of 23% and a volume of 23 litres ( near as dammit 5 galls), the expression simplifies to:-
EBU = weight of hops in grams x % alpha acid10
31
so that the weight of hops to achieve a desired EBU level for a 23 litre (5 gall) brew becomes:-
Weight of hops(gms) = 10 x desired EBU% alpha acid
Now although I have an ambivalent attitude to units of measure - I use whatever are convenient, be they kilos, pounds, grams, pints, litres or gallons, I realise that some brewing stalwarts, although they have advanced from Brewers' Pounds to Specific Gravity, still stick to ounces, pounds, pints and gallons. The conversion is simple.Assuming 1 oz = 28.4 grams,
EBU = 28.4 x Weight of hops in ounces x % alpha acid10
= 2.84 x weight of hops in ounces x % alpha acid.Now since weight of hops in ounces x % alpha acid = AAU,
EBU = 2.84 x AAUThe most imprecise part of the initial calculation is the Hop Utilisation, so the above relationship can only be approximate.If the Hop Utilisation is 20%, as used by Wheeler and Protz, the factor becomes 2.47, and if we assume a 24% conversion it is 2.96.I think if we say that: -
BU = 3 x AAUthis is good enough as a first approximation. Those who wish to refine the expression will no doubt do so.
Please bear in mind that this equation applies to batches of 5 Imperial Gallons; batches of different volumes need to be corrected by multiplying by 5 and dividing by the volume brewed, e.g. 35 EBU in a 5 gall batch would become:-
35x5 EBU = 50 EBU 3.5
if the same quantity of hops was used to make 3.5 galls of beer.A volume of 6 galls would have a value of approx. 29 EBU for the same hop addition.
I calculated the EBU of one of my recent brews at 47; my local friendly brewery measured it at 42, and considering the hops were added in stages, I think my calculations are good enough for starters; I may refine them in the fullness of time if I can rely on more analyses by the brewery.Those who wish to convert regularly from AAU to EBU may find it convenient to construct a straight line graph of AAU against EBU. Values can then be read straight from the graph instead of having to be calculated each time. Meanwhile, for those who want just a rough approximation, the message is:-
For a 5 gallon batch of beer, divide the EBU value by 3 to get the equivalent AAU value.
i.e. 1 EBU = 3 AAU - or thereabouts.
35
Doug Hodkinson
The Sweet Wine Recipes from the Scottish.A.G.M.
Sweet White Table Wine (Barsac Style)
Apple Juice 1 litre White Grape Juice 1 litre Rhubarb 900grms Dried Apricots 200grms. Bananas (flesh) 225 grms. Honey 100 grms.Sugar 550 grms.Pectolytic Enzyme1/? Tablet Minavit Nutrient 1.2 grms Gervin No.3 or Varietal D yeast Boiled Water to 4.5 litres Sugar for Sweetening 340 grms.
Sweet White Table(Monbazillic)
Apple Juice 1 litre White Grape Juice 1 litre Canned Peaches 800 grms. Dried Apricots 400grms.Honey 50 grms.Sugar 525 grms.Pectolytic EnzymeVi Tablet Minavit Nutrient 1. grm.Gervin No.3 or Varietal C yeast Boiled Water to 4.5 litres Sugar for Sweetening 300 grms.
Sweet White Table (Heavy Loire)
White Grape Cone. 350 ml. Rhubarb 600grms Bananas (flesh) 200 grms.Dried Apricots 100grms. Strawberries 200 grms.Sugar 540 grms.Minavit Nutrient 2-3.grms. Gervin No.3 or Varietal C yeast Boiled Water to 4.5 litres Sugar for Sweetening 340 grms
